For a Christian, the Pope isn't just an expert on religion or a commentator on current events. He's the successor of Peter, called to strengthen his brothers and sisters in faith. His mission isn't to keep our eyes on him, but to help us keep our eyes on Christ. St. Josemaría summed up this bond in one phrase: "Omnes cum Petro ad Iesum per Mariam," or "All, with Peter, to Jesus through Mary."

That's why we listen to what the Pope says so carefully: he points the way to Jesus.

Pointing to Jesus Christ

Throughout history, popes have spoken on all kinds of subjects: prayer, family life, Christian joy, mercy, the defense of life, peace, care for creation, evangelization, each person's vocation.

But all of those topics revolve around one central question: how do we follow Jesus Christ here and now?

So when we read something a pope has written, we can go a step further than looking for information about the particular topic and ask ourselves:

• What is this inviting me to live out as a Christian?
• What part of the Gospel is it helping me rediscover?
• How can this bring me closer to Jesus?

St. Josemaría stressed the importance of knowing what the Pope teaches and trying to put it into practice.

How does the Pope communicate?

Not every papal text works the same way. In homilies, the Pope comments on the Word of God and helps apply it to daily life. In general audiences, he offers catechesis on different aspects of the faith. In encyclicals and apostolic exhortations, he explores questions of deeper importance to the Church and the world at greater length. There are also speeches, messages, letters, and remarks addressed to particular groups.

The best way to encounter these texts is to go straight to the official sources. You can find full texts on the Vatican website and current papal news on Vatican News.

A papal message shouldn't be something that shows up on your screen today and disappears tomorrow. It can also become material for prayer.

Reading past the headlines

Often we first hear the Pope's words through a quote circulating on social media. That can be a good starting point, but it's rarely enough on its own.

Every message has a context: an audience it's addressed to, a pastoral concern behind it, a specific intention. Before drawing conclusions, ask what he's actually talking about.

He might be speaking about a particular social issue and, beneath that, inviting us to live charity more fully. He might be addressing a global problem and, in doing so, reminding us of Christian hope.

The Gospel is the Word of God; a pope's words are not. But his teaching can help us understand that Word more deeply and discover how to live it out in our own time.

How to pray with a papal text

A message from the Pope can also become a starting point for talking with God. You don't need any special expertise. It's enough to begin simply: "Lord, what do you want to show me through these words?"

Here's one practical way to do it.

1. A first reading: try to understand

Start by reading the text slowly. Don't rush to apply it to your life or decide whether you agree with it. Just try to understand what it's saying.

Then you might ask yourself:

• What's the main idea here?
• What line caught my attention the most?
• What concern or desire of the Pope's do I sense behind these words?
• What does this help me discover about God, or about Christian life?

Sometimes all it takes is one line that keeps echoing in your mind.

2. Rereading: let it speak to you

Then comes a more personal question: "What does this have to do with me?"

The Pope is speaking to the whole Church, but his words can reach each of us individually. Not because every text is written with our particular situation in mind, but because the Holy Spirit can use those very words to enlighten us and show us something God wants to tell us in this moment.

We might ask ourselves:

• Is there something here I need to hear today?
• Is there a line that made me uncomfortable? Why?
• What moves me to give thanks, and what moves me to ask for something?
• Is there a concrete call I've been avoiding?

If the Pope is speaking about Christian joy, maybe the question is: "Am I bringing hope to the people around me?" If he's speaking about mercy: "Is there someone I need to forgive?" If he's speaking about prayer: "Am I really making room for God in my day?"

3. Next steps: live it out

Prayer doesn't end with a nice idea. It looks for a response.

After reading and praying, we can choose something small: spending more time in prayer, quietly helping someone, tending to a relationship, reaching out to someone in need, or living an ordinary responsibility with a little more joy.

The final question can be very simple: "Lord, after reading this, what small step can I take to become more like you?"

Walking with the Current Pope—and Rediscovering His Predecessors

Following the current pope closely lets us gradually discover the calls and priorities he sets before the Church. Today, we can do that directly through Pope Leo XIV's homilies, audiences, and messages, available on the Vatican's website.

But following today's pope doesn't mean starting from zero. We can also return to the writings of his predecessors and discover that many of today's questions have been considered in light of the Gospel for decades.

For example:

• If you want to think about love, relationships, and the body, you might turn to St. John Paul II's catecheses on the Theology of the Body, including the one on the nuptial meaning of the human body (here).
• If you want to explore what it really means to love and to live charity, Pope Benedict XVI's Deus caritas est (God is Love) begins from something essential: Christianity is born of an encounter with a Person (here).
• If you're thinking through your vocation, your choices, or your future, Pope Francis's Christus vivit (Christ is Alive) is addressed specifically to young people and speaks about discernment, calling, and Christian life (here).
• If you're concerned about ecology and how we inhabit the world, Laudato si' invites us to look at the care of creation through our relationship with God, with others, and with the earth (here).

Taken together, the writings of the popes are something like a library for life's biggest questions.

Reading what he says and praying for him

Amid so many voices competing for our attention, listening to the Pope can help us go back to what matters most: Jesus Christ.

But there's one more step. It's not just about reading what the Pope says: it's also about praying for him. St. Josemaría encouraged doing this every day, mindful of the weight of his mission in service of the whole Church.

We can end every reading exactly that way: praying for the Pope, for his intentions, and for the whole Church. And then return to our own lives with one question: "Jesus, what do you want me to do with what I've just heard?"